I decided to take care of an orphaned kitten approx. 2 weeks old but struggling

http://www.safehavenforcats.com/newborn.htm and the http://www.messybeast.com site about kittens are good places to start in caring for kittens. It’s hard work, but the best place to start is with your vet since you saw blood in the stool. The vet can give you meds to kill worms and other parasites that could be the cause of the problem. Most kittens have them. You don’t say how old your kitten is, but in the web sites I gave you it should help you with what they should be eating at various ages.

I’m sorry for what you are going through with your kitty Marta. I live in the next province over as Montreal. Wondering if there is a veterinary college or vet tech college in Toronto where they might treat your kitty for a reduced fee. Or if you could contact some local shelters who work with a vet who might give you a lower price or let you pay the fee over time. Or could your parents loan you the money and you could pay them back? There is a vet college in Guelph, but that’s pretty far from where you live. Wish that I could be of more help. Really hope that there is some workable solution for you and kitty.

Marta, now that she is 2 weeks old, she will be moving around more and more. She probably loves being petted, snuggled, and kissed. Hopefully, you checked out the websites I posted, it would relieve your mind a bit if you do. It may not be critical at this point if you don’t get her to the vet, but eventually she WILL need to go. She will need her first shots to keep her healthy. There is no way I can tell you whether she is sick. I am not a vet but have hand reared newborn kittens for years. There will also be the issue of getting her spayed so that she can’t have unwanted kittens. That can be costly too. Let us know how she is doing.

Hi, Marta, first of all this is a great set of videos to help you take care of your new baby: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ctfhMJUdxZA

It is very hard indeed to raise an orphaned kitten without their mum, as the odds are heavily against them, but with some luck and a lot of love and TLC, it can be done. The main thing, however, is how strong kitten is and how healthy mum was and this is something we have no control over. Little kittens are also very difficult for vets to treat unless there is a specific problem — all they can really do is give them antibiotics which, as these can cause diarrhoea which is life-threatening in kittens, they like to avoid if possible. So first of all, stop worrying about not being able to afford the vet yet, there is not much that the vet could do. I think the little bit of blood you saw is probably indeed worms, as Kittyzee thinks, and at two weeks, I would think your vet might be reluctant to worm her anyway as she is so tiny. I would think four weeks would be more likely (but I may well be wrong, it’s a long while since I cared for tiny kittens). The best thing is to worm mum during pregnancy but of course with strays and orphans this is not possible. So for the moment, know that taking her to the vet is probably not the most important thing and neither is the worming, the most important thing is that she is gaining weight. What are you feeding her? None of us would recommend Hertz. KMR is the best or goats’ milk, if you can get it (in the baking aisle or chiller at Walmart or similar shops). As for the crying, she is lonely, normally she would be huddled up all day with her other siblings and her mum. Things that can help — a small nest with a stuffed toy for her to cuddle up to, an unwashed sweater of yours in the nest so that it smells comfortingly of you, some people recommend a ticking clock wrapped in a towel to imitate mum’s heartbeat, a heating pad or hot water bottle wrapped in a towel (with room in the nest so she can crawl off if she gets too hot, that’s very important as kittens this young can’t regulate their own temperature very well), and as much time spent next to your skin as possible — if you could rig up some kind of safe sling to keep her next to you, that would help.
If there’s anything else we can help with, just let us know. The first vet visit usually takes place at around 8 weeks unless there is a specific problem that needs seeing to.

Warm welcome to TDK Marta!
Thank you for caring fore newbie kit!
Good luck/any more updates – questions just post here for members will continue try help too.

Here is a popular chat/link with more helpful links:

Links for Raising Kittens

A good thread for constipation: http://dailykitten.com/chat/topic/chaos-guide-to-constipation/

Marta, it is not a good sign that she doesn’t want to eat. Kittens this small can crash very quickly when they do not eat as their blood sugar level crashes and this is life threatening. Smear some honey on her gums and mouth so that she can lick it off. Get some Nutrigel as soon as you can and smear this on the same way. Stop diluting her food so much and see if the honey makes her want to eat. You may have to force feed her if she keeps on refusing to eat. And since you are sure that she has still not pooped since Monday, I am sorry but I do think a vet visit now would be the best thing — they can give her an enema and show you how to use the triangle method. (If you check on youtube, there is a video on how to do it called, We squeeze the poop out of Brutus’.) And look for goats’ milk at Walmart.